MRI: Acquisition of a Field Emission Gun Transmission Electron Microscope for Biological Structure Determination

MRI：购买场发射枪透射电子显微镜用于生物结构测定

• 批准号: 0923437
• 负责人: Ricardo Bernal
• 金额: $ 126万
• 依托单位: University of Texas at El Paso
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-09-01 至 2013-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0923437&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: MRI; Acquisition; Field; Emission; Gun

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).Funding has been awarded to the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) under the direction of Dr. Ricardo Bernal for the purchase of a new 200 kilovolt field emission gun electron microscope equipped with a stage that is capable of maintaining the sample at liquid nitrogen temperatures. This new instrument will be used to determine the high resolution three-dimensional structure of macromolecular assemblies such as nanopolymer particles, viruses, and various protein complexes. Disciplines including nanotechnology, virology, biochemistry and cell biology all rely on defining molecular structure to properly understand function. This state of the art instrument will allow the probing of three dimensional structures to nearly atomic resolution. Researchers throughout the region will have access to the new instrument increasing its impact as a regional resource. UTEP is in the process of establishing a highly competitive cryo-electron microscopy facility as part of a larger structural biology initiative to expand research capabilities. Facilities exist at UTEP for in-house X-ray crystallography, NMR as well as powerful computational resources for structure determination. Furthermore, the University has started construction of a new Chemistry building that includes a cryo-EM facility to house the new instrument. Small molecule and macromolecular X-ray crystallography together with new NMR instrumentation and the new cryo EM facility will help establish a highly competitive structural biology program at UTEP and the southwestern region of the U.S. Having this sophisticated instrument at UTEP will not only stimulate underrepresented minorities to pursue careers in science but it will provide UTEP students with the training that will make them highly competitive at an international level. Results from data obtained with this instrument will be published in high impact peer reviewed scientific journals and will be presented at scientific conferences for wide dissemination.

该奖项由2009年《美国复苏与再投资法案》(公法111-5)资助。该基金已授予得克萨斯大学埃尔帕索分校(UTEP)，由里卡多·伯纳尔博士指导，用于购买新的200千伏场致发射枪电子显微镜，该显微镜配备了能够将样品保持在液氮温度下的工作台。这一新仪器将用于确定大分子组件的高分辨率三维结构，如纳米聚合物颗粒、病毒和各种蛋白质复合体。包括纳米技术、病毒学、生物化学和细胞生物学在内的学科都依赖于定义分子结构来正确理解功能。这种最先进的仪器将允许探测三维结构，达到接近原子的分辨率。整个区域的研究人员将能够使用这一新的工具，增加其作为区域资源的影响。UTEP正在建立一个极具竞争力的冷冻电子显微镜设施，作为扩大研究能力的更大结构生物学倡议的一部分。UTEP拥有内部X射线结晶学、核磁共振的设施，以及用于结构确定的强大计算资源。此外，该大学已经开始建造一座新的化学大楼，其中包括一个低温电磁设施来容纳新的仪器。小分子和大分子X射线结晶学，加上新的核磁共振仪器和新的低温EM设施，将有助于在UTEP和美国西南部地区建立一个具有高度竞争力的结构生物学课程。在UTEP拥有这种复杂的仪器，不仅将刺激未被充分代表的少数族裔在科学领域追求职业生涯，而且将为UTEP的学生提供培训，使他们在国际层面上具有高度竞争力。使用该仪器获得的数据的结果将在影响较大的同行评议的科学期刊上发表，并将在科学会议上提出，以便广泛传播。